How to Paint the Interior of a House

Steps

1. Develop a vision. As you tour the house, write down your thoughts on color, keeping sunlight, windows, gloss and trim in mind.
   • Light colors work anywhere, but dark colors require rooms with lots of windows and natural light. Painting a basement den a deep blue might sound relaxing but can turn the room into a dungeon!
   • If you're preparing a house for sale, stay with neutral colors that could match any decor or furniture.
   • If you're e-savvy, take digital photographs of the rooms in question and adjust the colors with your favorite photo editing program. This will ensure you and everyone involved know exactly what the room will look like.
   • If you're transforming your home for yourself, live a little. Go nuts. Like a color? Be bold. If you don't like it, guess what? You can paint it again. Feeling artistic? Plan a mural. It's your place. The only person who has to like it is you (and the people who live with you!).
   • Complementary colors work well when adjacent rooms open to each other (try two shades of the same color for a neat effect). You can go for bold contrast when crossing a barrier (like a door).
   • Carefully consider the gloss level. The shiny gloss paints are easy to clean, but will make any wall blemish stand out. The flat paints will help disguise wall blemishes, but can be difficult to clean. Generally, you'll want glossier paints where there's lots of steam or cooking (baths and kitchens) and in high-traffic areas. Flatter paints are preferred for large walls and ceilings.
   • Consult a professional home decorator or stager to guide you.
2. Come to an agreement. There are probably others in your life who have a vested interest in your home. Get their consensus.
3. Make a very educated guess. Estimate the area you'll need to cover. Measure the height and width of each wall. In the U.S., coverage estimates are given in square feet, everywhere else on the planet uses the metric system. To find the area of a given wall, simply multiply the height by the width.
   • Keep a detailed list you and others can make sense of like "Liv. Rm. west wall __ sq. ft."
   • Don't forget to subtract for windows and doors.
   • For odd walls with angled ceilings, make your best guess. If you're not comfortable doing this, measure the wall at its highest height and multiply that by its width. Now subtract the lowest height from the highest height, multiply that number by the width, cut that answer in half, and finally subtract that new number from the original height by width. That should give you the wall area.
   • As you estimate, err on the high side (round up). It's better to have too much paint than to run short.
   • Determine the coverage area for each color and estimate the number of gallons you'll need for each.
4. Plan the budget. Costs will vary greatly, depending on price and quality. Choosing mid to upper grade paint, expect to pay in the area of $350.00 in paint alone for a 2000 sq. ft. house. Add another $100 to $200 in brushes, rollers, pans, tape, and other materials. Don't forget food, if you plan to feed your workforce. When it comes to materials, not all paints are equal. Some truly cover with one coat, some say they do but don't. Your costs will double if you have to apply two coats to everything, so buying the cheaper paint might cost more in the long run. Trust your paint professional salesman (to a certain degree) to tell you which paint to buy. You can generally go cheap on primer, expensive on top coats.
5. Plan the schedule. Get a grip on the time it will take to bring the project to fruition. Plan for time to move furniture, wall prep, cut in, the painting itself, eating and breaks, and don't forget cleanup and bringing furniture back in. As you plan, err on the side of prudence. Unforeseen events will slow you down, so allow time for these. Remember, this is a multi-day project. Don't try to fit too much into a day. If you move faster than planned, great!
6. Plan the workforce. If you intend to not hire a professional crew, you'll need lots of help. There are many jobs to be done. First there's the furniture moving, then wall preparation, floor covering, materials gathering and prep, cleaning, and don't forget everyone will have to eat. It can easily take a team of five people a full ten days to paint a two-story (approx 2000 sq.ft.) home. Get as many people to help as you can. If some can only come one or two days, great. Maybe others can fill in. Ensure you plan with your workforce members in mind. They'll need plenty of time to arrange days away from work. Identify a few key personnel:
   • The Cutters. Someone with meticulous attention to detail and a steady hand should be assigned the job of "cutting in," or painting a straight edge where needed, such as along a wall where the ceiling does not get painted. Many products are available to assist, but none work as well as a person who's good at doing it freehand. Ensure this person is skilled (ask them to show you). A poor, jagged, wavy or splotched cutting-in job will jump out at you every time you walk by it. Why more than one cutter? This job is nerve-wracking and painful to hands and arms after a few days. You'll want to give this person a break after a few walls.
   • The Trimmers. Designate some folks to do the trim enamel on baseboards, windows and door frames. These also require careful attention.
   • The Coordinator. This person will care for the needs of the rest of the workforce, fetch drinks, make sandwiches, make runs to the store for last-minute needs, cook (or arrange) lunch and dinner, make phone calls, get directions, wash brushes, etc. Don't underestimate the need for this key person! When not gainfully employed, he or she can do some rolling.
   • The Rollers. You should actually only need a few of these, as they can cover a large area fairly quickly.
   • The Caulkers. Caulking and hole patching (spackling) is an important job that must be done before you begin painting (with adequate time to dry and sand).
7. Lose the furniture. Seriously, empty the room. Simply moving everything to the middle of the room is not good enough. Rent a storage space and spend a day filling it up. Keep the tables and things you can put paint cans on, but everything else has got to go.
8. Prep the house. Wash the walls, remove wallpaper, patch, spackle, seal stains, dry and sand before you attempt to paint. Now is also the time to apply painters tape for trimming, lay drop cloths, etc. You can also buy your paint at this time. Don't wait until the last minute. It can take hours to mix many gallons of all your colors. Remember that traffic triples at your home-supply and hardware stores on weekends. Buy on a weekday if possible.
9. Open the windows. Ventilation will help things dry faster and keep the air fresh for your workforce. If dust or other airborne particles are prevalent, find another ventilation system.
10. Prime. Dark colors, stains (once sealed), and previously unpainted surfaces (drywall, spackle, etc.) will need a primer coat, usually white. Although not all surfaces need a prime coat, skip this step at your peril! Dark colors will likely show through the first -- or even the first couple-- topcoats of paint. Sealants and unpainted surfaces like spackle patches will absorb or repel moisture in a topcoat at a different level than the areas surrounding them. Applying a good primer coat will help even out these differences. Primer equalizes a wall to a uniform surface. It's like erasing a canvas before drawing a new picture. Although some will argue the point, you generally don't need to spend a great deal on primer or buy special primer. A cheap, 5-gallon bucket of plain, flat white paint will usually do the trick and cover a large area. Give your primer at least 24 hours to dry (follow its instructions) before applying a topcoat.
11. Get started! Start with the largest or most difficult room first. Putting it off until last will make you dread getting to it. See How to Paint a Room for instructions on how to specifically paint walls and rooms. Consult the Related wikiHows below for additional help.
12. Clean up! Ensure all your materials are cleaned and properly disposed of.
13. Tackle floors after walls. If you plan on changing the floors, do them after the walls. You will make a mess when painting an entire house. You don't want paint on your new carpet.
14. Reward your workforce. Especially if they're a volunteer workforce. Your call here, but err on the side of generosity.

Tips

• Keep plenty of rags and clean water about for minor or major mishaps.
• Don't kill yourself on the first couple days. Plan accordingly and maintain a steady pace to keep from getting burnt out. Painting a room is a race, painting a house is a marathon.

Warnings

• You will make a mess or two. Don't dread it, plan for it accordingly.

Things You'll Need

• drop cloths
• brushes (various sizes, several cut-in brushes)
• paint
• rubber pouring lid/flap/spout -- yes, it's worth it
• sandpaper
• rollers
• roller extension pole
• spackle
• caulk
• painter's tape
• rags

Related wikiHows

• How to Prepare a Room for Painting
• How to Use a Paint Roller
• How to Repair Holes in Drywall
• How to Patch a Wall
• How to Remove Wallpaper with the DIF Method
• How to Remove Wallpaper from Drywall
• How to Repair Drywall Tape That Is Separating from Your Walls
• How to Combat the Smell of Paint
   

New Home Sales Are the Worst since 1995

Purchases of new homes fell to a new 12 year low ending in Dec of last year, the biggest annual decline on record. The medium price also dropped last month by 10% from Dec 2006, the biggest decline in 37 years.

 These reports may reinforce the concern that falling home values and stricter lending rules   will lead to more foreclosures and hurt consumer spending. The Federal Reserve as of late has been making drastic cuts, hopefully these rate cuts will help to avoid a recession.

 These numbers may be a blow to the ideal of a housing-market recovery.

The broader economy is very close to falling over the edge and according to many of the experts the Fed really need to thing aggressively on cutting rates as if we were in a recession.

 The government's economic stimulus plan also seeks to address the housing slump. The accord includes a provision allowing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the largest U.S. Mortgage finance companies to temporarily buy mortgages of as much as $729,750, exceeding the current $417,000 federal limit.

The National Assoc Of Realtors also stated recently the sales of  previously-owned homes, which account for about 85% of the market, fell more that forecast in December, capping the biggest yearly slump in more that a generation.

 According to a lot of the experts, the real estate market will not make any tangible type of recovery until at lease 2009.

Good luck

James Loftis P.A.

www.RealEstate911.com

Selling your house with code violations.

The following information  is not specific to all cities and counties, please contact your own city and county to verify any permit issues.

  Selling your house with code violations could be very costly to you the seller.

You should inform all prospective buyers in writing of any work that was done to your property without the proper permits. If you don't, the buyer could sue you if something later goes wrong or if the city  eventually discovers that the work was done without the proper paperwork and demand that the work that was done without the proper permits be torn down.

  May buyers get nervous when a seller notifies them that   work was performed on the property without the required permits and then either request  a lower  selling price or cancel the deal  altogether.  If you don't want to take this risk by making the required disclosure, consider calling the local building dept and see if you can obtain an "as built" permit for the work that was performed without  the permit.

 As "as built" permit is basically a permit that is issued after a project is completed and city inspectors determine that it meets the current building code.

 When issuing the as-built permit the city may levy a fine on you for doing the work without filing for the permit. But the fine would likely be less that the steep discount the buyer may demand to purchase your home in its present illegal condition, and you should also keep in mind of the legal consequences if the buyer sues you after the sale is completed and they find out about the illegal repairs.

Good Luck

James Loftis P.A. CRS,GRI,EPRO

www.RealEstate911.com

Pyramid Of Life
Use this In Your Life
Talk-------- ------Softly
Walk-------- -------Humbly
Eat--------- --------- -Sensibly
Breathe----- --------- -----Deeply
Sleep------- --------- -----Sufficientl y
Dress------- --------- --------- --Smartly
Act--------- --------- --------- ----Fearlessly
Work-------- --------- --------- -------Patiently
Think------- --------- --------- --------- -Truthfully
Believe----- --------- --------- --------- ----Correctly
Behave------ --------- --------- --------- -------Decently
Learn------- --------- --------- --------- --------- -Practically
Plan-------- --------- --------- --------- --------- -------Orderly
Earn-------- --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- Honestly
Save-------- --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ---Regularly
Spend------- --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- ----Intelligentl y
Love-------- --------- --------- --------- --------- --------- -----Passionatel y

www.RealEstate911.com

Building your own home

Building your own home can be difficult, but you can get a decent ball park  figure if you have a good idea about the floor plan and materials you want  before choosing a contractor.

 Construction cost currently average between $95 and $150 per sq foot according to B4UBuild.com a company that provides floor plans and other information for people who are planning to build a new house.

 You probable  can keep your own costs down near the lower end of the spectrum if you settle for basic  building materials, but expenses  can quickly  soar  above $150 or even more than $200 per sq foot  if you  instead want  expensive  tiling , fancy  cabinets  or the like.

 Your construction costs will also depend on the actual shape of your new home.  As a general rule, the simpler the floor plan, the lower your costs. Rectangular or square homes minimize the needed amout of lumber and save on labor charges for framing.  More elaborate plans that include things like vaulted ceiling drive up the cost because they require extra materials and additional labor.

  There are some internet sites and software programs that are available to help you with the estimates of your project. . One of the the websites is  http://www.buiildig-cost.net/,  which can provide you with a free estimate  based  on the factors ranging from the quality of  materials you want to the use to the cost of permits and related  items that you'll need to obtain from the city or county.

 Once you have figured out how much you want to spend, call a t least three contractors and ask  each one for written bids on the job.. Also check out their  insurance coverage and licenses with state  regulators, contact your local Better Business Bureau to se if they have any complaints on file, and make sure  you ask for references so that you can call there previous  customers and set up a time to  look at each builder's work.

 After you decide on which contactor to use, sit down with him or her and decide which changes you might need to make in order to keep your construction cost within the budget that you established earlier.

 Building your own home is certainly not a task for everyone. But for those who have a dream of building there own home, it is not as difficult as it may seem. There is a lot of help that is available to you. For a lot of people who do build there own home it will a source of pride for many years to come.

Good Luck.

James Loftis

http://www.RealEstate911.com

Steps you can take to help avoid Foreclosure

Facing foreclosure is a very difficult situation for most anyone.

If you are facing foreclosure there are a few things that you need to consider.

By the time you get a court date, it's a little late to unwind the clock; instead if you want to stop the bank for foreclosing on your house, the time to get help is in the early stages of the foreclosure process not at the end.

 Most people know how to account for every dollar that come in, It may not be your favorite task each month, but if money is tight and you're trying to make ends meet, you  know  when the budget is about to snap.

 When you have a list of debts and bills, you should sort them from most important to least important. While all the bills should be paid, the one that goes to the top of the list is the one that will cause your family the most damage if it isn't paid on time.

 If I were organizing a list, it would read: mortgage payment; home equity line of credit; utility bills; car payment; credit card debt and other bills.

 Once you know that you won't have enough cash to go around, it's tempting to skip the largest bill, which is typically your mortgage payment. But in some states, foreclosure is fast-tracked, which means you could find yourself receiving a foreclosure notice from your lender in as little as 60 days.

 So once you know there isn't enough money to go around and you know you'll be missing a payment you need to call your lender. If you've already missed a payment, and your lender has called you, you need to pick yup the phone and return the call.

Talking to your lender is the best way to stop foreclosure.

 Many borrowers have complained that when they call there mortgage company no one picks up the phone.  Or, they get transferred from department to department.

  The truth is, if you don't talk to your lender, and it doesn't get recorded in your file, it doesn't matter how often you tried to call. When it come to foreclosure

Trying doesn't count.

 If you're  having trouble reaching your lender, call a HUD-certified housing counselor, who may be able  to reach  out to your lender on your behalf. The toll free number is (800)569-4287, or goes online to www.HUD.Gov/foreclosure/index.cfn.

 Once you miss a payment your lender will start sending you letters. If you want to avoid foreclosure, open the letters,. These are supposed to contain information on how you can save your home.

  IN order to help you save your home, lenders can make changes to the terms of your loan agreement. The best time to do this is either just before or just after you miss your first payment.

 There are a number of things that the lender can do.

•(1)   Reinstate your loan (you'll catch up with everything you owe by a certain date.

•(2)   Offer forbearance (give you a few months off from making payments, while developing a plan to get you current on your loan down the line.

•(3)    Set up a repayment plan (where you agree to pay  a little each moth for the next six  months or a year until you're caught up

•(4)   Modify your loan (this will change the terms so that the payments are more affordable.

 All of the talk you're hearing about the government-sponsored solution to the mortgage crisis deals with loan-modifications. The federal government is pushing investors who bought your loan to agree to modify the terms for the next few years. When a lenders aggress to modify your loan, it could mean that the  missed payments will be added  to the loan amount, or that the interest rate will be changed from a variable  rate to a fixed, or perhaps it will be lowered to a different interest  rate. A final loan modification option is to adjust the amortization schedule, so that you have a longer loan term, but your payments each month are smaller.

 So, if you are facing foreclosure, Talk to your lender.

There are options available to you.

Good Luck.

James Loftis P.A. CRS,GRI, EPRO

http://www.realestate911.com/

Steps you can take to help avoid Foreclosure

Facing foreclosure is a very difficult situation for most anyone.

If you are facing foreclosure there are a few things that you need to consider.

By the time you get a court date, it's a little late to unwind the clock; instead if you want to stop the bank for foreclosing on your house, the time to get help is in the early stages of the foreclosure process not at the end.

 Most people know how to account for every dollar that come in, It may not be your favorite task each month, but if money is tight and you're trying to make ends meet, you  know  when the budget is about to snap.

 When you have a list of debts and bills, you should sort them from most important to least important. While all the bills should be paid, the one that goes to the top of the list is the one that will cause your family the most damage if it isn't paid on time.

 If I were organizing a list, it would read: mortgage payment; home equity line of credit; utility bills; car payment; credit card debt and other bills.

 Once you know that you won't have enough cash to go around, it's tempting to skip the largest bill, which is typically your mortgage payment. But in some states, foreclosure is fast-tracked, which means you could find yourself receiving a foreclosure notice from your lender in as little as 60 days.

 So once you know there isn't enough money to go around and you know you'll be missing a payment you need to call your lender. If you've already missed a payment, and your lender has called you, you need to pick yup the phone and return the call.

Talking to your lender is the best way to stop foreclosure.

 Many borrowers have complained that when they call there mortgage company no one picks up the phone.  Or, they get transferred from department to department.

  The truth is, if you don't talk to your lender, and it doesn't get recorded in your file, it doesn't matter how often you tried to call. When it come to foreclosure

Trying doesn't count.

 If you're  having trouble reaching your lender, call a HUD-certified housing counselor, who may be able  to reach  out to your lender on your behalf. The toll free number is (800)569-4287, or goes online to www.HUD.Gov/foreclosure/index.cfn.

 Once you miss a payment your lender will start sending you letters. If you want to avoid foreclosure, open the letters,. These are supposed to contain information on how you can save your home.

  IN order to help you save your home, lenders can make changes to the terms of your loan agreement. The best time to do this is either just before or just after you miss your first payment.

 There are a number of things that the lender can do.

•(1)   Reinstate your loan (you'll catch up with everything you owe by a certain date.

•(2)   Offer forbearance (give you a few months off from making payments, while developing a plan to get you current on your loan down the line.

•(3)    Set up a repayment plan (where you agree to pay  a little each moth for the next six  months or a year until you're caught up

•(4)   Modify your loan (this will change the terms so that the payments are more affordable.

 All of the talk you're hearing about the government-sponsored solution to the mortgage crisis deals with loan-modifications. The federal government is pushing investors who bought your loan to agree to modify the terms for the next few years. When a lenders aggress to modify your loan, it could mean that the  missed payments will be added  to the loan amount, or that the interest rate will be changed from a variable  rate to a fixed, or perhaps it will be lowered to a different interest  rate. A final loan modification option is to adjust the amortization schedule, so that you have a longer loan term, but your payments each month are smaller.

 So, if you are facing foreclosure, Talk to your lender.

There are options available to you.

Good Luck.

James Loftis P.A. CRS,GRI, EPRO

http://www.realestate911.com/

Buying properties at auctions

Buying properties at auction certainty has its advantages but the pitfalls are plentiful.

Shopping for real estate is always a trial, but buying a property at an auction-whether it's a Foreclosed unit sold by a lender or a new condo offered by a developer comes with a special set of problems.

 Auctions are poised to become an alternative to conventional purchase strategies as bargain hunters seek to take advantage of the worst U.S. housing slump in 16 years.

  South Florida has become one the most hardest hit areas of the nation, because of the cheap arability on money early in the decade, condo developers launched dozens of projects across the region, especially in downtown Miami. Now thousands of the new condos are coming on the market and developers are facing a glut of units either unsold or abandoned by; their buyers.

 Auctions of foreclosed properties and excess developer inventory produced mixed results last year. At some auctions, almost nothing sold; at others, there was a buyer for almost every unit.

 Some buyer's priced out of the market during the housing bubble now have the opportunity to acquire homes at there  true market value, But bargain hunters  need to educate themselves to avoid trips to court or buying an unsuitable property.

 On of the things to look out for is the "buyer premium" which is a 5 or 10 percent premium that is added to the final bid by the auction house to pay for there advertising  and other expenses. Buyers often get caught up in the buying frenzy and forget about this extra expense.

 To resister to bid, buyers are required to provide on the day of the auction a check which has to be certified funds or a cashier's check for the amount of the buyer's premium. Unsuccessful bidders get there check back, checks of successful bidders go toward the purchase.

 Successful bidders' must deposit 10 Percent of the final sales price at the auction and close within 30-45 days. The contract is not contingent on obtaining financing. If buyers fail to get a mortgage they lose there deposit.

 Every auction house has its own rules tat are available to buyers well before the auction. Some auctioneers even hold workshops to educate potential buyers.

  The challenges of buying houses and condos at auction go beyond understanding the terms of the auction. It includes researching the condo complex and the individual unit to be bid on

 In a down market there are many variables that need to be taken into consideration before biding. A bidder needs to research the percentage of foreclosed units in a building and the number of homeowners who are behind on there maintenance fees.  A high number of foreclosures or delinquent dues can impact the bidders financing on the deal. 

Lenders may require lager down payment or increase the interest rats of a loan if they think the property is risky.

 Lenders are aware of the fact that the condo association could go broke if the dues are not paid and this could cause property   values to fall in the entire complex.

 When a lender forecloses on a property in Florida, it takes part in a foreclosure sale at the courthouse. If it finds no takers there, the lender buys the property and either auctions the property off or contacts with a real estate brokerage to market the property as an reo.

 Auction sales are not contingent upon inspection, so it is important to inspect the unit before bidding on it. This is sometime difficult to do but I would recommend making this inspection before biding, if you are unable to make the inspection yourself you may want to consider paying a professional to do so for you.

 Developers are  warming to the idea of selling fast and at a discount rather that continuing to pay carrying cost, which for those who are willing  to do there homework before buying  could save them a lot of money on there home purchase.

James Loftis P.a.Realtor,Broker Assoc,CRS,GRI,EPRO

www.RealEstate911.com

Some positive news for Realtors in -08

 In spite of all the bad news reports as of late regarding the nations housing, there is plenty of good news, the most recent of which comes from NAR, the National Association Of Realtors.

 Laurence Yun, the chief economist for NAR, has plenty of good news for realtors. At last month's conference. Yun attributed much of today's sub prime mortgage problems to greed. Wall Street wanted the 10-12 percent return that traditional mortgage products yielded as opposed to the smaller returns from more traditional mortgage products. His take on the Wall Street types were that they gamble and lost.

 Yun's outlook for 2008 sees a shift from greedy speculators to serious homeowners. 2008 will be a year of opportunity where there will be serious healthy business.. Furthermore, Yun predicted that the market returns to normal by 2009.

 Here are some key pieces of the report from Yun,

1. New Housing stats: Even though these are dropping, there was too much building in recent years. The Market is simply adjusting to normal supply-and demand pressures.
2. Foreclosures: According to Yin, the 41 percent increase in foreclosures has resulted primarily from investor-heavy real estate purchase in California, Florida and Nevada. The majority of these individuals are flippers whose investment did not payoff. More importantly, the number of foreclosures in Utah, New Mexico, North Carolina and South Carolina is actually declining.
3. 3. Under-priced markets and superstar cities:  Although the coastal markets are still overpriced. Middle America is under priced
4. The recovery has started: Other than the three  states hit heavily by job losses in the auto industry, (Indiana, Michigan and Ohio) the states that first experienced a downturn in the northeast are now in recovery, Specifically Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York and Rhode Island were the fist to feel the slump and are now well into recovery. Furthermore , there appears to be a pent-up demand for first time buyer properties due to a large number of Gen  Y's (born 1977 to 1994) that are now buying there first homes. Falling interest     rates will motivate many of these buyers to step into the market now.
5. New Jobs and corporate profits are still strong: Corporate profits are still strong with companies as diverse as Microsoft and Jack Daniels reporting close to record profits. Furthermore, the economy has generated 4 million net new jobs and wages are rising.
6. A weak dollar may harbinger more foreign investment s in U.S. real estate: Although the decline of the U.S. Dollar will end up costing us more when we go overseas or purchase imports, it has resulted in more manufacturing jobs returning to the U.S. It also may mean more foreign investment in the U.S. properties as well. Just a few years ago, the Canadian dollar was only worth 70 cents in U.S.  Currency. Today, the Canadian dollar has been hovering at about $1.05 to $1.10 U.S".  What this means is that we can expect more Canadians and Europeans to be purchasing U.S. property, because our prices are approximately 50% cheaper that they were just three years ago.
7. Real Estate: Still the best shelter: For those agents who represent reluctant first time buyers, Yun points to some interesting research from the Federal Reserve. Between 1995 and 2004, the average renter accumulated $4,000 in wealth. In contrast the average homeowner accumulated $184,000, Furthermore, the typical homeowner holds there property for 6 years. Within this period of time, NAR's research shows that approximately 97 percent of the homeowners will have a positive equity   position after that period of time.

Bottom line is that 2008 represents the best window that buyers will have to find  excellent deals with excellent financing.

Good Luck

James Loftis P.A.,Realtor,Broker Associate,CRS,GRI,EPro

http://www.RealEstate911.com

Home prices in 20 Metropolitan areas fell in October by the most in at least

Six years, a private survey showed Wednesday.

  Property values fell 6.1 percent from October 2006, more that forecast,

After dropping 4.9 percent in September, according to the  S&P/Case-Shiller Home

Price index. The decrease was the biggest since the group started keeping year over year records in 2001. The index has fallen every month this year.

  Prices are forecast by the experts to decline even more as the jump in foreclosures

And stricter lending rules make it harder for buyers to find financing.

These declining values make it harder for owners to tap home equity

For extra cash, posing a risk to consumer spending.

  Compared with a month earlier , home prices dropped 1.4%, the biggest one month decline since records began. The index is a composite of transactions

 In 20 metropolitan areas. Seventeen  cities showed a year over year

Decline in prices, led by 12 percent slumps in Miami and Tampa.

 A report on Nov 21st from the National  Association Of Realtors show

Home prices fell in one third of U.S. cities last quarter.

 The glut of foreclosures adding to the unsold homes on the market

Is predicted to further reduce market values in many homes.

With all these predictions by the experts it seems that it may  be awhile

Before we start seeing  real improvement in this market.

James Loftis P.a.,Realtor,Broker Assoc, CRS,GRI,EPRO

http://www.RealEstate911.com